Stay Safe at Home With a NOAA Weather Radio

This post is sponsored by Midland Radio, a Kansas City based company and the leader in weather safety products.

While we all try to embrace a spring without family get-togethers, tailgating at Royals games, and weekend kid activities, what we can’t forget is that the weather never stops. Here in KC, we know all too well that beautiful spring days can quickly be followed by stormy afternoons during severe weather season. Last spring we all remember that afternoon when an EF4 tornado made its way from Lawrence to Bonner Springs, leaving destruction and devastation in its wake.

Some dear friends of ours were in the direct path of that tornado, and while thankfully they walked away unharmed because they knew exactly where to go to be safe (the basement), their house (and swing set!) were not so fortunate. One thing they didn’t have, that they wish they did, is a weather radio. The storm knocked out the electricity, and with low phone batteries and shoddy cell service, they could no longer rely on those “trusty” standbys we so often take for granted. A weather radio would have helped them feel confident they were no longer in harm’s way.

It’s important to be prepared in the event the unspeakable happens, and having a weather radio can alleviate some of the stress that scary weather can bring about. Weather radios are “indoor tornado sirens” that silently monitor the NOAA Weather Radio Network radio broadcast 24/7/365, which is America’s official federal alerting system. In fact, NOAA Weather Radio is what triggers the EAS alerts on your TV and the cell phone calls on your phone. It all starts with NOAA Weather Radio, a broadcast that comes direct from your local National Weather Service office. There is no faster, more robust, and reliable way to alert people to deadly weather than a weather radio.

Outdoor sirens were designed to be heard only when you are outside…soccer game, walking, getting out of the car at the grocery store…basically all those things we are no longer able to do. There’s no guarantee you’ll even hear the sirens in your house above the screaming and general chaos involved with being a parent in quarantine. With a weather radio, you receive the alert inside your home the instant it’s issued, and the radio tells you exactly what the alert is, who’s in the path of the storm, and how long it’s going to last. Peace out uncertainty!

Now maybe it’s just me, but screen time has gone up quite a bit in our house over the last month. It’s important to note that when our kids are watching Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, DVD movies, or playing video games on the TV, we will get NO warnings on that screen. Zero. Now more than ever it is important to have a weather radio in the house since there’s a pretty good chance the local news won’t be actively streaming at any given time, and it is the only guaranteed way you’ll get that warning notice as soon as it goes out.

Good news, KCMC is here to help get you set up! Use code: KCMOM to get 20% off plus free shipping on all weather radios and E+Ready products from Midland, the gold standard brand of NOAA Weather Radios. The code is good on all of their Weather Radios and is good until 12/31/20.

Once you get your radio it’s pretty simple to get set up. You program the radio to monitor for only the county where you live, and tune the radio to the nearest NOAA transmitter. You put three AA-size batteries into the radio for back-up power in case of electrical outage, and then you plug it into the wall and you forget about it. The radio (like a smoke detector) silently monitors the NOAA broadcast. If at any time the National Weather Service needs to alert you, the radio automatically goes off with an 80-decibel alert tone, and then the official message from your local NWS office. You may be sleeping, watching Netflix or Disney+, vacuuming, working out in the basement, or hiding from your kids in the bathroom with your headphones on. When the radio goes off, it definitely gets your attention and informs you what the issue is. And it does this faster than your cell phone.

So please, add one to your list for your next online shopping trip! While the best way to stop the spread and stay safe from COVID-19 is to stay home, the best way to stay safe in your home during severe weather is with a NOAA Weather Radio.

Stephanie lives in Shawnee with her husband and two crazy redheaded children, Jack (7) and Allison (4). When she’s not working full time as an aviation meteorologist, or trying to stop her kids from fighting, she enjoys running, knitting, attempting to bake, cheering on the Huskers (#GBR!), and catching up on her DVR. You'll often find her dragging her kids and husband to breweries around KC in search of the best IPAs the city has to offer. You can follow her day-to-day snippets on Instagram (@stephavey).

1 COMMENT

This is an awesome article! It is so important to have a NOAA Weather Radio in not only every home, but every business! If the phone towers go down, and the power goes out you won’t be able to get alerts! A NOAA Weather Radio gives you first alerts moments before the storms happen! My family has a NOAA Weather Radio on every floor of our home, and we keep a Midland ER210 in our cars to get first alerts! Thanks for the awesome article, I hope this helps spread the word of the importance of having a weather radio!

Things To Do

Kansas City Mom Collective is a locally-focused parenting resource for moms and families. Passionate about parenting and our community, Kansas City Mom Collective strives to connect area moms to relevant resources, local businesses, can’t-miss happenings, and most of all — each other!